Category: Life & Style

“The Outsiders” was Angelina Jolie’s first Tony, and she won for Best Musical for her work on the production. Best director (Danya Taymor), lighting design, and sound design were other accolades bestowed upon the production based on the 1967 novel by S.E. Hinton. Vivienne, Jolie’s daughter and a producer assistant on the popular show, was in attendance.

During the event, “it is a common sensation to be an outsider, even though society changes.” The winners of Best Play and Best Musical Revival, respectively, “Stereophonic” and “Merrily We Roll Along,” performed during the event. The performance by Pete Townshend and the rest of the “Tommy” cast was fantastic, and Eddie Redmayne’s “Cabaret” song caused quite a stir online due to its extreme intensity.

Guests at the live-streamed event from Lincoln Centre included Idina Menzel and Cynthia Erivo, who praised “Wicked” and its message of “green girl power.” Jonathan Groff (“Merrily We Roll Along”), Kara Young (“Purlie Victorious”), and Maleah Joi Moon (“Hell’s Kitchen”) all gave moving monologues in which they paid deep gratitude to their parents. During her hilarious and motivational acceptance speech, “Hell’s Kitchen” star Kecia Lewis asked the audience to refrain from texting her while she was onstage.

The biggest second-generation ethanol plant in the world was launched in São Paulo by Brazilian President Luis Ignacio da Silva in late May. Using a novel approach that decreases emissions by 30%, the new Bonfim Bioenergy Park in Guariba will generate 82 million litres of ethanol per annum.

Bagasse, a byproduct of sugar cane processing, is the raw material for second-generation ethanol, often called bioethanol. According to Raízen, the company responsible for the Bonfim factory, this innovative procedure produces 30% fewer emissions than conventional methods. The remaining sucrose is extracted from crushed sugarcane using modern technology, and the cellulose fibres are separated for simpler fermentation using a hydrolysis process that employs enzymes.

To produce 1.6 billion litres of biofuel per year, Raízen is building nine more second-generation units. Brazil is the world’s leading producer of ethanol, which finds widespread use as an additive and engine fuel. The fact that hydrous ethanol can fuel 90% of Brazil’s new gasoline-powered cars is noteworthy.

The Argonne National Laboratory found that using bioethanol as a fuel can cut emissions by 50–60%, and that’s just during the manufacturing process. “Our engineers and researchers have achieved something unparalleled globally, transforming bagasse into high-quality ethanol,” President da Silva remarked during the opening.

Former nuclear weapons facilities in the US are being transformed into solar farms as part of the Department of Energy’s Cleanup to Clean Energy effort. These locations, which were formerly reserved for nuclear activities, will power about 70,000 households.

A 2,800-acre solar farm with a 400-megawatt capacity will be located at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). Spitfire will oversee 100 MW of solar power and an extra 500 MW of battery storage. North Renew Energy of Massachusetts has been granted a contract for 300 MW of solar power.

Some other possible locations for the programme are the following: the New Mexico Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, the Nevada National Security Site, the Savannah River Site, and the Hanford site in Washington. Historical records show that these sites were never truly home to nuclear weapons. Rather, these sites were utilised for training, testing, and the production of plutonium and other nuclear weapons materials, or disposal.

The US Energy Secretary, Jennifer Granholm, states, “Working closely with community leaders and private sector partners, we’re cleaning up land once used in our nuclear deterrence programmes and deploying the clean energy solutions we need to help save the planet and strengthen our energy independence.”

A 500-year-old bronze idol of Saint Tirumankai Alvar that was stolen from a Tamil Nadu temple is scheduled to be returned to India by Oxford University. The University of Oxford Council agreed to the Indian High Commission’s request to have a 16th-century bronze statue of Saint Tirumankai Alvar returned from the Ashmolean Museum on March 11, 2024.

The Ashmolean Museum declared that this decision is currently awaiting Charity Commission approval.

The Ashmolean Museum first acquired this 60 cm-tall figure in 1967 from Dr J R Belmont’s collection through Sotheby’s auction business (1886–1981). The Indian High Commission formally requested the return of the statue after an independent researcher discovered its origin in November of last year.

The museum says that when it bought the monument in 1967, it did so in “good faith.” The Ashmolean Museum, which is renowned for both its vast art collection and its archaeological artefacts, acted quickly after it was discovered that the statue had been taken.

The return of stolen Indian antiquities from the UK is part of a larger trend that includes this particular incident. The Art and Antiques Unit of Scotland Yard, along with other US and UK authorities, conducted a collaborative investigation before transferring these treasures to the Indian High Commissioner in the UK.

Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams rocketed into space, making history as the first woman to test a spacecraft on its maiden mission. Williams spent the last ten years contributing to the spacecraft’s design. She launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida aboard Boeing’s Starliner spaceship at 8:22 p.m. on an Atlas 5 rocket. It’s her third trip into space.

Starliner was successfully launched into the proper orbit on its third attempt. One day later, it will dock with the International Space Station (ISS). SpaceX Crew Dragon, ISS, and Boeing Starliner are the three US crewed spacecraft currently in orbit at the same time.

According to NASA, if everything goes according to plan, Starliner will dock at the Harmony module of the ISS, and Williams and her fellow passenger Butch Wilmore will stay for around a week to test the spacecraft and its subsystems. Completing this trip is essential to certifying the Starliner for routine NASA Commercial Crew Programme missions.

The nearly ten-day expedition aims to demonstrate Starliner’s suitability for long-duration space travel.

NASA gave Boeing a $4.2 billion contract in 2014 to create it, but compared to SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, which cost $2.6 billion and is currently in operation, Boeing’s project was beset with delays.

This year’s World Environment Day stands out as an example of conservation innovation with the Rajaji Raghati Biosphere (RRB) and a future initiative in the Western Ghats. Entrepreneurs Jai Dhar Gupta and Vijay Dhasmana are in charge of these initiatives, which focus on reforestation, community involvement, and ecosystem regeneration.

A new Delhi businessman, Jai Dhar Gupta, was diagnosed with bronchial asthma and went on to become a champion for clean air.

In Rajaji National Park, Jai and environmentalist Vijay Dhasmana are currently establishing India’s first private biosphere. This 35-acre project in Uttarakhand tries to stop mining and poaching while restoring natural vegetation. The area first deteriorated and became arid because of agroforestry practices that focused on monoculture and soil erosion.

The group changed the topography, removed eucalyptus trees that weren’t native, and planted thousands of native plants. They brought 80 new species in 2023, and during the upcoming monsoon season, they intend to bring another 35 to 40.

Their initiatives include forbidding combustion-engine vehicles from operating within the biosphere and collaborating with nearby tribes, especially the Gujjars. As part of the effort, a second biosphere with a focus on distinctive local flora would be established above the Western Ghats, close to Pune.

On Thursday, Sri Lanka granted Starlink, Elon Musk’s satellite-based ISP, a preliminary licence to deliver internet services in the island nation.

Officials from Sri Lanka’s President’s Media Division (PMD) made the announcement via an X: “State Technology Minister @kanakadh announced that TRCSL (Telecommunication Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka) has granted preliminary approval for @Starlink to provide satellite-based internet services in Sri Lanka, following a formal public consultation process.” Following that, the PMD stated, “The details of the public consultation will be published tomorrow.”

Last month, during the 10th World Water Forum in Indonesia, Musk met with Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe, and as a result, the permission process was accelerated. This announcement is the result of that meeting. Wickremesinghe pledged to speed up Sri Lanka’s application to join the global Starlink network during their meeting.

Musk made Starlink accessible in Fiji the day after he debuted it in Indonesia last month, with the goal of improving internet connections in distant corners of the archipelago. In an X-cast, Elon Musk said that “Starlink is now available in Fiji.”

Sri Lanka is the latest country to receive preliminary clearance to use Starlink’s satellite internet service, which aims to increase connections across the country.

The historic Shore Temple in Mamallapuram, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has become India’s first Green Energy Archaeological Site. The Green Heritage Project, a partnership between Hand in Hand India and Renault Nissan Technology & Business Centre India, is responsible for this significant achievement.

The installation of three 10-kilowatt solar power plants has made it possible for the Shore Temple to run entirely on solar power. By recharging the grid with excess energy, these plants can help meet future energy demands while reducing their negative effects on the environment. Using solar power, the initiative improves the tourist experience while decreasing the negative impact of tourism on the environment.

Three water kiosks provide purified water from a solar-powered reverse osmosis (RO) facility, which is an important installation. Electric buggies, operated by local women, provide environmentally friendly transportation for the elderly, those with impairments, and pregnant women; they also help reduce carbon emissions and promote inclusion.

A parking structure equipped with three charging stations has been set up to facilitate the transition to electric vehicles. The Shore Temple’s conversion to a green energy facility honours its cultural and historical importance while demonstrating the need for sustainable heritage conservation practices.

The largest optical astronomy digital camera ever constructed is going to be hosted in Chile. It weighs approximately three tonnes and has a resolution of 3.2 gigapixels. The camera and ground-based telescope of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory have been moved to Cerro Pachón in the Coquimbo area, which is 565 kilometres north of Santiago.

According to Stuartt Corder, assistant director of the NOIRLab facility and chief science officer of the AURA organisation, “Everything needed for operations is now on the summit and ready for checkout and hopefully for installation later this year.”

Along with the camera and an automated data processing system, the Rubin Observatory has an eight-meter wide-field telescope. Over a period of ten years, it will produce a catalogue of fifteen petabytes, or twenty terabytes of data per night.

Studying possible collisions between Earth and asteroids or neighbouring stars and planets is a major goal, in addition to understanding dark energy and dark matter. Speaking about the importance of the research, Corder stated, “In ten years, we hope to answer fundamental questions about the universe’s origin and evolution.”

The Atacama Desert in Chile is the driest on the planet, and due to its exceptionally bright skies, it is perfect for astronomy.

According to Tuesday’s announcement by the China National Space Administration (CNSA), the Chang’e-6 spacecraft has begun its return to Earth after launching from the moon’s far side. The goal of China becoming the first nation to return lunar samples from the far side—the side of the moon that is continuously facing away from Earth—is getting closer with each passing day.

After collecting samples from June 2–3, the probe departed the moon at 7:38 a.m. local time (2338 GMT). According to CNSA, Chang’e-6 “passed the litmus test of high temperature on the far side of the moon.” Operating independently of Earth, Chang’e-6 differed from its predecessor, Chang’e-5, which procured samples from the near side. Rather, it depended on the April-launched relay satellite Queqiao-2.

Soil samples were collected from both the surface and depths of the moon by Chang’e-6 using a robotic arm and drill. After taking a sample, it proudly flew the Chinese flag for the first time. With the samples transferred to a return module, the probe will meet with another spacecraft once it reaches lunar orbit.

After returning to Earth, this module is scheduled to touch down in Inner Mongolia around June 25.